nolastyankee
January 4th, 2004, 06:37 AM
Most Unique builds begin with satisfied owners looking upon their new, shiny rolling chassis and mild, clean disassembly. For us, the disassembly part was certainly true, but we had an additional job...Removal of all of the special touches the first owner had added. I smiled as we began the "exorcism" or the "Spence-ectomy".
http://www.uniquecobra.com/uploaded/nolastyankee/Interior1.jpg
I could hardly wait to remove the god-awful white vinyl covered seats. The B&M quicksilver shifter was next. Finally, the battery (which had been conveniently relocated to the passenger footwell) was taken out and the interior actually looked presentable.
We picked up the car in Alabama the week before Thanksgiving 2003. The rain which beat down from just outside Indianopolis until our arrival home in Wisconsin actually served to clean the car slightly. This did not deter us from attacking the remaining 10 years of grime with an extra dose of Simple Green. Like a dog from the pound, the rescue Cobra was responding. Her chrome shone for the first time in years and we couldn't be happier.
Next started the real stuff...You know, where tools are required. We unbolted the roll bar and learned disassembly hint number 1.
:) When removing the roll bar, make sure it comes straight up. Even the forward weight of the brace is enough to make the roll bar bind and it will never come out. Have another person take the forward weight of the bar while gently using a rubber mallet on the main hoop.
Once bar came loose we discovered the forward braced section was full of water. Not just a little damp, not a simple few dribbles. There was a full-on torrent of Alabama's finest sludge that came pouring out of the forward braced section! This was clearly from years of leaking and not a simple rainy trip home. Thus we learned tip number 2.
:) Some sort of silicone or sealant would be advisable to prevent water from running down into the roll bar. Once inside it is trapped!
Continuing the process we decided to investigate the source of the strong gas smell in the trunk area. Believing the rotten hoses were to blame, we drained the tank of something that looked a lot more like apple cider than gasoline. But as the tank came out, we found that the fuel tank vent had been sealed with duct tape. Duct tape! Beneath the tank was more Alabama blackwater. This all cleaned up nicely and provided a few laughs to boot.
My dad and I expected quite a few frozen and rusted bolts, but the fact of the matter was that there was not too many items on the car that were more than finger tight. We felt ourselves fortunate that the Cobra didn't shed parts all the way back from Alabama.
We finished that weekend with the car drained of fluids. The doors, trunk lid, hood, side pipes, windshield, quick jacks, dash and gauges, seats (?), and roll bar were safely tucked away in the basement. Counter to the wisdom on this site, we removed the door hinges along with the doors. We were careful to note the orientation and shim sizes to get us back in the ballpark when it came time for reassembly. The cowl brace was pretty rusty and we needed to do some additional cleaning that the hinges would simply not allow. More on this later. This has been preached many times, but disassembly hint 3 is still good advice.
:) When removing the hood and trunk lid, leave the brackets in place and simply remove the pivot screws. Accoring to the Weavers, the bolts which attach the castings to the body and truck/hood lids could be damaged or misaligned if the brackets are removed!
Tip 4 is also fairly intuitive, but is easily forgotten in the rush of an exciting project.
:) An easy way to catalog the many bolts that are removed is to use Ziploc bags to hold them and the parts they attach. Invest in multiple sizes of Ziploc and a few impervious markers. Bolts all start to look the same when they are in a big pile!
With measurements in hand for the body buck, my folks left for home. Dad and I waved with greasy hands and
http://www.uniquecobra.com/uploaded/nolastyankee/Interior1.jpg
I could hardly wait to remove the god-awful white vinyl covered seats. The B&M quicksilver shifter was next. Finally, the battery (which had been conveniently relocated to the passenger footwell) was taken out and the interior actually looked presentable.
We picked up the car in Alabama the week before Thanksgiving 2003. The rain which beat down from just outside Indianopolis until our arrival home in Wisconsin actually served to clean the car slightly. This did not deter us from attacking the remaining 10 years of grime with an extra dose of Simple Green. Like a dog from the pound, the rescue Cobra was responding. Her chrome shone for the first time in years and we couldn't be happier.
Next started the real stuff...You know, where tools are required. We unbolted the roll bar and learned disassembly hint number 1.
:) When removing the roll bar, make sure it comes straight up. Even the forward weight of the brace is enough to make the roll bar bind and it will never come out. Have another person take the forward weight of the bar while gently using a rubber mallet on the main hoop.
Once bar came loose we discovered the forward braced section was full of water. Not just a little damp, not a simple few dribbles. There was a full-on torrent of Alabama's finest sludge that came pouring out of the forward braced section! This was clearly from years of leaking and not a simple rainy trip home. Thus we learned tip number 2.
:) Some sort of silicone or sealant would be advisable to prevent water from running down into the roll bar. Once inside it is trapped!
Continuing the process we decided to investigate the source of the strong gas smell in the trunk area. Believing the rotten hoses were to blame, we drained the tank of something that looked a lot more like apple cider than gasoline. But as the tank came out, we found that the fuel tank vent had been sealed with duct tape. Duct tape! Beneath the tank was more Alabama blackwater. This all cleaned up nicely and provided a few laughs to boot.
My dad and I expected quite a few frozen and rusted bolts, but the fact of the matter was that there was not too many items on the car that were more than finger tight. We felt ourselves fortunate that the Cobra didn't shed parts all the way back from Alabama.
We finished that weekend with the car drained of fluids. The doors, trunk lid, hood, side pipes, windshield, quick jacks, dash and gauges, seats (?), and roll bar were safely tucked away in the basement. Counter to the wisdom on this site, we removed the door hinges along with the doors. We were careful to note the orientation and shim sizes to get us back in the ballpark when it came time for reassembly. The cowl brace was pretty rusty and we needed to do some additional cleaning that the hinges would simply not allow. More on this later. This has been preached many times, but disassembly hint 3 is still good advice.
:) When removing the hood and trunk lid, leave the brackets in place and simply remove the pivot screws. Accoring to the Weavers, the bolts which attach the castings to the body and truck/hood lids could be damaged or misaligned if the brackets are removed!
Tip 4 is also fairly intuitive, but is easily forgotten in the rush of an exciting project.
:) An easy way to catalog the many bolts that are removed is to use Ziploc bags to hold them and the parts they attach. Invest in multiple sizes of Ziploc and a few impervious markers. Bolts all start to look the same when they are in a big pile!
With measurements in hand for the body buck, my folks left for home. Dad and I waved with greasy hands and